Swirling Tides: Wrath of the Storm
by substitutingrealitywithmyown
Summary: Naruto was banished from Konoha after the Sasuke Retrieval mission, what will change in the Elemental Nations with an Uzumaki out on his own? Deception Naruto and Council/Elders bashing. Rated M for safety, nothing bad yet but it might come later on
1. Falling Leaf

**Disclaimer: _Naruto_ isn't mine, so don't sue me. There might be some jutsus that I'll make up and I'll list them at the bottom of each chapter and there might be some OCs that I make up as we go along. **

Overlooking the village of Konohagakure was the Hokage monument. Four stern visages of the previous Hokages' seemed to watch over the village that they had all given their lives for. A figure could be seen standing on top of the Yondaime Hokage's head. From a distance, people might mistake the young man for the deceased Hokage, however this was not Namikaze Minato, Konoha's Yellow Flash. This was his son, Namikaze-Uzumaki Naruto, the jinchuriki of the Kyubi no Yoko and recently banished ex-ninja of Konohagakure no Sato and Hi no Kuni.

Naruto closed his eyes as he thought back to the circumstances that had brought him to this point and he wondered if his father was still alive, what would he think of the village that he, his wife and essentially his son, gave their lives for. Naruto had to stifle a grin as the clone's memories of the council chamber flooded his mind. He actually chuckled at the looks on the elders' faces when he reveled himself to be just a clone. _'And they call themselves ninjas, yet they couldn't even see through a simple Kage Bunshin!'_ he thought.

With a sigh, Naruto created a dozen clones and transformed them into non-descript looking civilians. He went to each of the clones and handed them a letter.

"You all know what to do," Naruto said. "Just deliver the letters and dispel. Good luck, and those letters will only open for their recipients, there's a small blood seal on them to make sure, so there's no worry about them falling into the wrong hands before they are read."

The clones nodded and vanished. Naruto turned back to the village and sighed once again. He looked down at the stone carving of his father's head.

"I wonder what you're thinking tou-san, how would you feel about how the village you and kaa-san gave their lives for, treated your son," Naruto pondered. "They disobeyed your final wish, would you be disappointed in me if I wished for this place to burn for what the villagers did to me. Does that make me any better than them in wishing for their demise as they did my own?"

"It makes you human," a familiar voice said from behind Naruto.

"Here to arrest me Kakashi-sensei," Naruto said.

"Of course not," Kakashi said, appearing in a swirl of leaves.

"Then what do you want?"

"Naruto, I am sorry this happened…"

"Save it, we all knew this would happen sooner or later. The council and the villagers have been calling for my head ever since I was born, just waiting for a chance to strike. This way I can strike back."

"How long have you known?"

"That I'm the son of the Yondaime Hokage, your sensei," Naruto said. "I've known for years, ever since I became a ninja."

"Then why didn't you say anything?" Kakashi asked.

"Would it have made a difference or better yet, should have it?"

"No, you're right. What your name is shouldn't make a difference in how you are treated," Kakashi said. "Sensei would be ashamed of me, he never took favorites with me, Obito or Rin."

"No, he wouldn't have but I know why you had to teach the teme. That's the problem with Konoha, the whole village is so caught up with a person's name that they forget whom the person actually is. If people knew who my father was from the start, I probably would have turned out like teme; arrogant, stuck-up, thinking that everything had to be handed to me. It's probably better this way."

"But you've been banished!" Kakashi exclaimed.

Naruto shrugged. "So what, at least now I can go after my dreams without holding back."

"What do you mean 'holding back' and I thought your dream was to become Hokage?"

Naruto chuckled. "Well maybe when I was a kid but once I became a ninja, I realized that I would never be accepted enough to become Hokage, and when I found out about my parents, things changed."

"You still haven't answered my question about holding back?"

"I didn't, did I? It's pretty self-explanatory. Self-preservation," Naruto said. "What do you think that the villagers would have wanted; a smart, strong 'demon' or and idiot?"

Kakashi nodded. He had been assigned to help guard Naruto as a child, and had had to chase off plenty of idiotic villagers from trying to 'finish the Yondaime's works.

"How much, then, were you holding back?"

"Do you really think that I failed the graduation exam three times on purpose but yet still pull off those pranks and outrun chunins, jonins and even some ANBUs afterwards? My chakra reserves are probably the largest in the village, and that's without the Kyubi adding his own. However my control is only at high-genin level, so I still waste a lot of chakra, hence the reason I need a clone to help me create the Rasengan. My speed without my seals on is probably equal to Bushy Brows' speed when he's using the Gates. My taijutsu is decent, probably mid-chunin but coming from where I started and since no one would teach me, I'll consider it a fair trade. My stealth, well if I don't want to be found, I won't be, and let's leave it at that."

"And genjutsu?" Kakashi asked, with a smirk behind his mask.

"Still sucks," Naruto chuckled. "Can dispel them, but can't set one up to save my life. But hopefully, as my chakra control gets better I can start using some of the more basic ones. And it's funny, I can't even do a Henge right, since that's technically a genjutsu."

"What do you mean, I've seen you do Henges all the time?" Kakashi asked.

"Yes but it's a special Henge, I literally 'transform' into the object," Naruto said. "The old man labeled it a kinjutsu, just like my Oiroke no Jutsu."

The pair laughed, though Kakashi was amazed to hear the details about Naruto's Henge.

"So you actually transform into the object, even inanimate objects?" he asked.

Naruto nodded. "Hai, and that's why jiji labeled it a kinjutsu, I'm the only one who can use it properly." Naruto stiffened. "Well, my work is done. The clones have finished dropping off the letters and with the council meeting breaking up, I better get going, they'll soon send their goons after me. Ja ne Kakashi-sensei."

Naruto vanished in a swirl of wind.

_'To be able to use an elemental Shunshin at his age, he truly is his father's son,'_ Kakashi thought. "What have we done?"

Meanwhile in the Hokage's office, a busty blonde woman was sitting at the desk, bottles of sake littering the floor.

"How could they do this to him? After all he's done for them," Senju Tsuande, the Godaime Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato, slurred. "Damn gaki, didn't even say goodbye."

There came a knock on the door and Shizune's voice was heard calling through, "Lady Hokage, there is a man here who says that he has a letter from Naruto-kun for you."

Tsuande's head shot up. "Bring him in," she barked. The door opened and an average looking man walked in. Tsuande narrowed her eyes at the brown haired man. "Who are you? You're not from Konoha."

"That is true, I'm not. I am however just a messenger here to deliver a scroll to one Senju Tsuande from Uzumaki Naruto," the man said.

"You know Naruto?" Tsuande asked.

"No, I have heard of him though and his exploits," the man responded. "And I must say that I'm surprised that Konoha would treat a hero with such disdain."

"Yes, he is a hero, many times over. The ignorant villagers don't deserve such a hero. Now you said you had a message from Naruto?"

"Yes, I do," the man said. He reached into his satchel and pulled out a scroll. He handed it to Tsuande. "Well, my job is complete, and I shall take my leave."

The man bowed to Tsuande and turned to leave. "Wait, what was your name sir?" Tsuande asked.

"Arashi, Kurama Arashi," the man said with a grin that seemed out of place. "Goodbye Lady Hokage."

"Good bye," Tsuande said. "Could you please sent my assistant, Shizune, in when you leave? She was also close to Naruto as well."

"Of course," Arashi said.

A moment later, Shizune entered the office. "You call for me milady?"

"Yes, I was about to open the letter from the gaki, and I'm sure that you would want to listen in," Tsuande said.

"Well yes of course, but I think you should read it first, since I got a letter from Naruto-kun as well, though I can't seem to open it."

"What!" Tsuande cried. "Naruto wrote you a letter as well?"

"Yes, that man, Arashi, gave it to me before I let him in to see you."

"Seems that Naruto had some secrets of his own," a voice said from the window. It was Jiraiya, and he was holding a scroll as well.

"You got one from the gaki as well," Tsuande said. "And what do you mean secrets?"

"That's a blood seal on these scrolls, that's why you can't open them so easily. Looks like the runt has been studying fuinjutsu. Those seals aren't easy to make either, it's near mastery level work."

"You're saying that Naruto is a seal master?" Tsuande asked.

"Nearly so," the Gama Sanin said.

"Where did he learn fuinjutsu? You didn't teach him, did you Jiraiya?"

The white haired man shook his head. "I was planning on teaching him the basics, to see how he did, during the training trip…but now…"

The room was silent.

"So hime, are you going to open your letter?" Jiraiya asked. Tsuande bit her thumb and swiped some blood across the seal. It glowed blue before the seal broke and Tsuande opened the letter.

_Dear Baa-chan,_

_ I wish it hadn't come to this but we all knew that this was coming eventually. Don't blame yourself, lay the blame where it belongs: Danzo and the Council. They're planning something, so keep an eye on them. Also make sure you pull up any stray 'roots' around your garden, they'll turn into weeds quickly. Don't worry about me, I'll be in touch as much as I can be and I've found a safe place to hole up for the time being. And besides, no one can find me if I don't want to be found. I'm sure you're also wondering how I was able to create this seal, well as they say 'deception is a ninja's best friend' and we have a very close relationship. _

_ Goodbye for now, _

_ Namikaze-Uzumaki Naruto_

"He knows!" Tsuande exclaimed. Jiraiya was grinning. "You knew he knew!" she accused.

Jiraiya waved his hands in from of him in a placating gesture. "I didn't know until I read his letter. But I'm not surprised; the brat is his father's son. He learned of and mastered the Rasengan in roughly a month."

"What should we do now?" Tsuande asked.

"We go on," Jiraiya said. "It's what the gaki wants, and we show the Council the error of their ways."

"What about his inheritance? I want to give it to him but you know the Council will never allow me to release those scrolls," Tsuande said.

"This is Naruto we're talking about, if he found about his parents, who's to say he didn't find the scrolls already," Jiraiya said.

"That's impossible," Tsuande said. "There's no way someone could break into my office and steal those scrolls."

"This is the brat who broke into sensei's office, knocked the old man out using only a Henge, and stole the Forbidden Scroll of Seals before even becoming a registered ninja," Jiraiya said, glee gleaming in his eyes.

Tsuande stood up and walked over to the portrait of the Yondaime Hokage. "The seal on here has been broken," she said.

Jiraiya broke into deep-bellied laughter. "Thought so, after I read my letter, I went to check on Minato's house, you know he had it sealed to make sure no one could break in, well those seals were all broken as well."

"So that means…" Shizune said.

"The gaki was one step ahead of everyone," Tsuande said with a broad grin. "He made off with his inheritance and his parents' scrolls, without being caught. Got to say, for the village prankster, this is one hell of a send off."

"He truly is the most unpredictable, surprising ninja," a voice, laced with amusement, said from the window. It was Kakashi.

"So you got a letter as well?" Tsuande asked.

"Yes but I also got a message directly from the source," the silver haired jonin said.

"You talked with Naruto!" Tsuande barked.

Kakashi nodded. "I found him on top of his father's head, and learned quite a bit about our favorite knucklehead."

"Like what?" Tsuande asked.

"He's been hiding a lot more than you would think, and he's a lot sharper than he let's on."

"Well, considering he knows about his folks, and made off with their scrolls and clan holdings without being seen or caught," Jiraiya said.

"So what are you going to do now? I'm sure Naruto sent more letters out, he made about a dozen Shadow Clones and had them Henge themselves. That means there's probably at least ten or so more people getting letters."

"I knew it, that little twerp. He delivered these letters himself," Tsuande exclaimed. "I knew that Arashi guy looked familiar."

"Arashi, that was the name Minato used when he took missions after he became Hokage," Jiraiya said.

"So who else would he have sent messages too?" Shizune asked.

"Probably the other rookies, Team Gai, Iruka and the Ichirakus," Tsuande said. "So I'm sure that I'll be getting some more visitors soon. And I'm sure that the Council will be making a public statement as well."

Just then, the door burst open and in came Sakura, Team 8, 9 and 10 along with their senseis and Iruka.

"What's the meaning of this?" Tsuande barked.

"Where's Naruto?" Kiba asked.

"Watch your tone Kiba," Yuhi Kurenai snapped.

Hai sensei, but we all got these letters from Naruto and they said to come to the Hokage for answers," Kiba explained.

"What happened?" Hinata asked. "Where's Naruto-kun?"

"They did it, didn't they?" Shikamaru said. "The troublesome Council finally went through with its threat."

Tsuande, Jiraiya, Kakashi and Shizune looked at the lazy Nara heir.

"Shikamaru, what are you talking about? What threat? Why would the Council make a threat against Naruto?" Sakura asked.

"How long have you know?" Tsuande asked.

"Known for sure, since the Chunin Exams," Shikamaru said. "I've suspected it for years though."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Kiba cried. The elder ninja looked at each other before coming to an unspoken decision.

"They're going to find out anyway, Danzo and the troublesome Civilian Council will most likely want to make an announcement as soon as possible," Shikamaru said.

"Would someone please tell us what the hell is going on?" Sakura demanded. "And what's this about Naruto and the Civilian Council?"

Tsuande turned to the younger ninja, looking them each in the eye. "What I'm about to tell you is considered an S-class secret, and if any of you speak a word of this to anyone outside this room, I won't hesitate to throw you in prison," she said.

"Not that that stopped anyone before, you know it's the worst kept secret in Konoha," Jiraiya snarled.

"What are you talking about? How can the dobe be mixed up with S-class secrets?" Ino said.

"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that Ms Yamanaka," Tsuande growled. Ino paled and nodded stiffly. "Now, what do you all know of the Kyubi attack 13 years ago?"

"The demon attacked the village on October 10th," Sakura said.

"And that the Yondaime killed it at the cost of his own life," Hinata continued. "That's what they told us at the Academy."

"Well, that is a lie," Tsuande said.

"You mean the Kyubi is alive!" Kiba exclaimed.

"What if it comes back?" Ino cried.

"Silence!" Tsuande roared. "Yes, the Kyubi is alive, so to speak. The Yondaime couldn't kill the fox, because you can't kill something that is basically a chakra construct with infinite chakra capabilities."

"What happened to the Kyubi then?" Neji asked.

"Do you know the term 'jinchuriki'?" Jiraiya asked. Everyone shook his or her head. "It means 'Power of Human Sacrifice.' As you know, there are nine tailed beasts of legend, the Kyubi being the nine-tailed fox. Now these demons can't be killed, but they can be contained."

"Contained?" Tenten asked.

"Sealed," Tsuande said.

"And that's what the Yondaime did, didn't he?" Sakura asked. "He couldn't kill the Kyubi, so he sealed it."

"But what did he seal it into, the Kyubi was said to have leveled mountains and raised tidal waves with a swipe of its tail," Tenten said. "No object could contain that much power."

"Correct, no object," Jiraiya said. "The term jinchuriki also means a person who has one of the Biju sealed within them."

"And Naruto is the Kyubi's jinchuriki, isn't he?" Hinata asked softly.

"Yes," Tsuande answered.

"WHAT!" Kiba yelled. "Naruto is the Kyubi?"

"NO!" Tsuande, Jiraiya, Kakashi, Gai, Shizune, Kurenai, Asuma and Hinata all roared. Kiba cowered slightly.

"Naruto is NOT the Kyubi, he is it's jailer," Jiraiya said. "The Yondaime sealed the fox inside Naruto because only a newborn child, whose chakra coils hadn't developed yet could survive the strain of such a massive amount of chakra being forced into them."

Naruto-kun's birthday is October 10th, he was born the day of the attack," Hinata said.

"Correct," Tsuande said.

"That's why the villagers give him such cold glares and call him 'demon,' 'murderer,' and all those most unyouthful names," Rock Lee said.

"They believe him to be the fox, not it's container," Neji said.

"So they can't tell the difference between a kunai and the scroll it's sealed in," Tenten said.

Tsuande smiled. "That's exactly right."

"But why did the Yondaime choose Naruto as the child," Sakura asked, feeling extremely conflicted. On one hand, she felt anger, as the Kyubi had killed her father, something her mother never let her forget. But on the other hand, she felt sad for Naruto. He hadn't asked to have the fox sealed within him. Naruto was less than a day old when the attack happened. Sakura even felt a little betrayed by the fact that her teammate hadn't trusted her with this information.

"The Yondaime was an honorable man, he couldn't just ask someone to give their child up for this burden," Jiraiya said.

"Is that why he used Naruto, who was an orphan?" Ino asked.

"No, he choose Naruto because he couldn't let another make that type of sacrifice if he wasn't willing to do the same," Shikamaru said from the couch, where he was lounging, head titled back and eyes closed."

"What are you talking about Shika?" Choji asked.

A gasp broke the silence. "It can't be," Hinata whispered. Everyone aside from Shikamaru looked at her.

"What Hinata?" Shino asked.

"Lady Hokage, what's Naruto-kun's real last name?" she asked. Tsuande, Jiraiya, Kakashi and Shizune broke into broad grins.

"Hinata, what are you talking about? Naruto's last name is Uzumaki," Sakura said. "Isn't it?"

"That was his mother's last name," Tsuande said. "Sensei, the Sandaime, gave it to him in order to protect Naruto from his father's enemies."

"Fat lot of that did him," Jiraiya growled. "He protected Naruto from people outside the village, but what about the people inside it?"

"I agree but what's done is done," Tsuande said, though she looked very angry as well.

"Hokage-sama, if Uzumaki is Naruto's mother's name, who was his father?" Sakura asked.

"Naruto's father was my student, Namikaze Minato," Jiraiya said.

"But your student was the…" Ino trailed off as he pale blue eyes widened."

"The Yondaime," Neji whispered.

"Naruto's dad was the Yondaime!" Kiba cried. "That's impossible!"

"It's true, Naruto's real name is Namikaze-Uzumaki Naruto," Tsuande said. "He is the only son of Namikaze Minato, the Yondaime Hokage, and Uzumaki Kushina, the Whirlpool's Crimson Death."

No on breathed, even the jonin aside from Kakashi were struck silent.

"Sensei would never allow anyone to make a sacrifice or decision that he himself wouldn't make," Kakashi said.

"YOU KNEW!" Hinata cried. "You all knew this whole time, and you never told him!"

"Hinata-chan, calm down," Kurenai said. "I know this is a lot to take…"

"NO, I won't calm down," Hinata screamed. "Naruto-kun's biggest wish is to have a family, to know his parents and you're telling us that you knew all along."

"Naruto already knows," Tsuande said. "He's probably known for years."

"But they why wouldn't he say something?" Sakura asked. "I don't think he'd be able to keep that big of a secret a secret for very long."

"Probably because he knew it wouldn't have made much of a difference," Jiraiya said.

"Of course it would have," Ino retorted. "He's the son of the Yondaime, he would have been treated like royalty."

"Funny, I asked him nearly the same question," Kakashi said. "And he told me that it shouldn't make a difference what his last name is, he is still Naruto. And besides, if people had known, Naruto thought that he'd end up like Sasuke."

"What do you mean sensei?" Sakura asked.

"Well, ignoring the fact that the Uchiha turned traitor," Kakashi said. "Sasuke was arrogant, he believed that just because he was the last Uchiha, he was entitled to anything and everything. And unfortunately, the villagers and the Council kept this attitude going, they worshipped the ground Sasuke walked on."

"Naruto is twice the ninja that Uchiha brat could ever be," Jiraiya said to the disbelief of the genin. "Naruto knows the value of hard work better than anyone of us. He knows that real strength comes from blood, sweat and tears. Sasuke thought that he was entitled to power."

"But, Sasuke-kun needed power to beat his brother," Ino said.

"Sasuke could never beat Itachi by achieving power like he's done," Kakashi said. "Itachi is a genius in every sense of the word. He was a gifted Sharingan user, but he also worked hard to grow stronger. He never relied upon his Sharingan, or used it as a short cut and the easy path to strength unlike Sasuke. There are no short cuts in life."

"And Naruto knows this better than anyone," Jiraiya said.

"Jiraiya-sama, you said that Naruto is twice the ninja Sasuke is, what do you mean?" Rock Lee asked.

"Yeah, Naruto was the dead-last of our class while Sasuke-kun was the Rookie of the Year," Sakura said.

"Please, those rankings mean nothing in the real world," Jiraiya scoffed. "Naruto's education was sabotaged by the instructors at the Academy, except for Iruka here."

"What are you talking about? Why would they do that?" Ino asked.

"Because of the Kyubi," Hinata said. "That's why. They all feared the Kyubi inside Naruto, and so they took their fear and anger of it out on Naruto."

Iruka nodded. "Yes, in fact Naruto only passed the graduation exam because he was tricked into stealing the Forbidden Scroll of Seals from the Hokage's office by Mizuki. Naruto was able to learn the Kage Bunshin in only a couple of hours, a jutsu that most ninja can't even hope to perform."

"Why? What's so different about the Kage Bunshin, they're just clones," Ino said.

"No, the Kage Bunshin is a B-ranked kinjutsu because the Kage Bunshin splits the user's chakra up evenly between the clones. So if one were to make a clone, the person's chakra would be spilt in half between the two bodies."

"Half…but Naruto can create so many clones," Sakura said. "I mean during the Chunin Exams…"

"That's nothing, the night Naruto learned the technique, he summoned over a hundred clones to stop Mizuki from killed me," Iruka said.

"And don't forget about the invasion when he beat Gaara," Shikamaru said.

"What are you talking about Shikamaru, Sasuke-kun was the one who beat Gaara," Ino said. Shikamaru then did something that no one had seen him do in years, aside from Choji. He laughed.

"You're joking," Shikamaru said. "Sasuke could barely keep up with Gaara. And Sakura don't say anything, you were unconscious during most of the fight. Naruto risked his life to save you Sakura, even when Gaara fully transformed. Naruto was able to muster enough chakra to summon about 1,000 clones and then to summon the Toad Boss, Gamabunta-sama to help fight Shikaku."

"A thousand clones," Neji gaped wide-eyed.

"Yosh! Naruto's flames of youth burn most brightly," Lee cried.

"How much chakra does Naruto have?" Kiba asked.

"Naruto has more chakra than anyone in the village," Jiraiya said.

"What!" the genin cried.

"It's true, at best I can make around 200-250 clones," Jiraiya said to stunned silence.

'You're saying that Naruto has…" Ino began.

"He has around 5-6 times as much chakra as I do."

"Is that from the Kyubi?" Choji asked.

"No, well not entirely," Jiraiya said. "Naruto naturally has outrageous chakra reserves, both of his parents had enormous chakra wells. And with the Kyubi, Naruto has near infinite reserves."

"You can't be serious," Sakura exclaimed. "If Naruto has so much chakra, why is he such an average ninja?"

"I'll let that crack at Naruto go only because you didn't know," Tsuande said. "Naruto's chakra reserves are his greatest weapon true, but they are also his greatest weakness. He has too much chakra to control easily."

"And besides Naruto is a much better ninja than you think," Jiraiya said. "He mastered the Rasengan, his father's jutsu, in a month, also he's nearly a seal master. Those scrolls he sent you were probably protected by some very complex seals."

"Though he didn't say that his genjutsu still sucked," Kakashi said with a hidden grin.

"Where is Naruto-kun then?" Hinata asked.

Juts then an ANBU appeared, and knelt in front of the desk.

"Yes," Tsuande asked.

"Hokage-sama, the Council demands your and Jiraiya-sama's presences in the Council chambers right away," the ANBU said.

Tsuande bristled. "They demand our presences, do they? Well, I think it's time I show those old fools who runs this village. Come on you lot, you want answers about Naruto, come with me and you'll get them, straight from the source."

Tsuande stood, dismissed the ANBU and strode out of the room with the rookies, their senseis and Jiraiya following.

"Tsuande, what is the meaning of this?" Homaru barked as the group entered the chamber. "Why are these children here?"

"They have been asking about their teammate Uzumaki Naruto," Tsuande said. "And I was of the understanding that only the Hokage could summon the Council on short notice."

Homaru glared down at the group.

"Where's Naruto?" Kiba barked.

"Silence genin," Danzo growled.

"I don't take orders from you, _civilian_," Kiba snarled. "The only people who can give me orders are my sensei and the Hokage, and you are neither."

Everyone's respect for Kiba rose dramatically after seeing him stare down Danzo. Tsuande and Jiraiya had to hide grins at the interaction.

"Where is Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked forcefully.

"You speak of that _boy_ with such familiarity," Kotane said.

"He's my friend," Hinata said, not backing down from the elder's glare.

"You're friends with that…" Danzo said in disbelief.

"Yes, we all are," Tenten said. "Now where is Naruto?"

"Let's see if you still call him friend when you know what that _boy_ is?" a civilian council member cackled.

"What, you mean how Naruto is the jinchuriki of the Kyubi no Yoko," Shikamaru said to the Council's disbelief. "What, did you really think that we'd think that Naruto is the fox himself? Just because you all can't tell the difference between the kunai and the scroll it's sealed in, doesn't mean we can't."

"How?" Homaru gasped.

"I told them," Tsuande said. "Though Shikamaru has known about it for months."

"Sakura, how could you dishonor your father's sacrifice like this," a woman screeched. "That monster killed you father, don't you realize that?"

Sakura looked up at her mother with something akin to disgust. "Yes, the Kyubi killed tou-san but Naruto isn't the Kyubi," she said. "He's my best friend aside from Ino, and because of you, I spent half my childhood pining after a traitor and a psychopath that is only obsessed with revenge. Naruto was the first person my age who was ever nice to me, he protected me from those bullies that used to make fun of me before I met Ino. But when I told you about it, you just yelled at me to stay away from the 'demon boy,' I never knew why you would say that until today. I'm ashamed to say that if I hadn't listened to you, I would have put more work into becoming a better ninja, so I wouldn't become such a burden to my teammates in the field."

"But I thought that you loved Uchiha-sama," Haruno Ayako screamed.

"That was nothing more than a crush that became an obsession," Sakura retorted. Seeing the stunned looks of her fellow ninja, she added, "I'm sure you heard about how I tried to convince Sasuke to stay, and when that failed, how I pleaded with Naruto to bring him back. It wasn't my proudest moment, I realized after Naruto got back that I didn't love Sasuke, it was just a stupid crush. Why would I love someone who wouldn't even give me the time of day?"

"Damn that demon, turning my own child against me," Ayako screeched.

"You've done that yourself," Tsuande barked.

"I make a motion that we send the hunter-nins after the demon on the charge of subverting our ninja," Ayako cried.

"Why would you need to send hunter-nins after Naruto, he's done nothing wrong," Tenten cried.

"The Council has the right to send hunter-nins after any missing, or banished ninjas if they are a threat to Konoha," Kotane sneered.

"Naruto deserted the village!" Sakura cried.

"No, they banished him," Shikamaru said, glaring at the Elders.

Every eye turned to the Council, who all had smug looks on their faces.

"You didn't?" Sakura whispered.

"Why?" Hinata asked.

"The demon was a safety issue to the village, he cause the Last Uchiha to leave the village," Homaru said.

"Are you serious?" Neji cried.

"You're blaming Naruto for Sasuke betraying the village," Kakashi said.

"Of course, why else would Uchiha-sama leave the village?" a civilian cried out. "He had everything here, it was the demon brat and that curse mark that Orochimaru placed on him, that caused him to seek out Orochimaru."

'That's the biggest load of shit I've ever heard," Neji shouted. Everyone was shocked at the outburst from the ever-stoic Hyuga.

"Sasuke deserted the village of his own violation, and went to join an S-ranked criminal," Tsuande said. "And you can't order my ninja around, so they're won't be any hunter squads sent after Naruto. Besides, since you stripped Naruto of his ninja rank, you can't send squads after him, since he's a civilian now."

Danzo glared at Tsuande but didn't say anything.

"So you banished a ninja for no reason aside from trying to do his job," Ino said in shock.

"No, we banished Uzumaki Naruto for failing to retrieve Uchiha Sasuke, as well as the attempted murder of Sasuke," Danzo said. "Also, Uzumaki used an abundance of the Kyubi's chakra in his viscous attack on Sasuke. Luckily, Sasuke was able to defeat the demon and escape with several non-life threatening, but still serious, injuries."

"And how do you know the details of their battle?" Shikamaru asked. "As far as I know, there were only two people that should know all that, one is a traitor and you've banished the other one."

"And Naruto wouldn't have used the Kyubi's chakra unless he had too," Kakashi said. "Say like if someone put a hand through his chest."

"WHAT!" Sakura, Ino and Hinata cried.

"When I arrived on the scene, Sasuke was gone and Naruto was unconscious with a fist-sized hole in his chest. The charring around the wound meant that Sasuke probably hit Naruto with a Chidori," Kakashi said mournfully.

Sakura looked at her sensei in shock, Gai looked angry at his rival while the others looked sick.

"It's too bad that Uchiha-sama couldn't finish off the Yondaime's work, by killing the demon," Ayako said spitefully.

Several of the genin looked ready to kill the pink haired woman, including Hinata. Sakura just looked up at his mother in disbelief.

"Don't be sure that the Uchiha brat beat Naruto. Knowing the gaki, he probably didn't try and kill the teme since it was his mission to bring Sasuke back," Jiraiya said.

"It doesn't matter, what's done is done, "Homaru said. "Uzumaki Naruto has been banished from Konohagakure no Sato and Hi no Kuni, and if he is found within our borders, he is to be killed on sight. That is the final decision of the Council."

The rookies looked furious but they knew there was nothing they could do. Their friend was gone forever. Hinata and Sakura were crying for two different reasons: Hinata was for not having the courage to tell Naruto how she felt about him, and Sakura was berating herself for having treated Naruto so poorly in the past and for making him think that she loved Sasuke. Sakura felt that it was her fault that Naruto had gone to such lengths to bring Sasuke back, all because she had begged him to do so.

"Hokage-sama, I have a request," Sakura said after drying her tears. "I wish to become your apprentice. I need to become stronger so that next time, I can be the one my friends lean on, not the other way around."

"Hokage-sama, I wish to become your apprentice as well," Ino said sharply and formally.

"As do I," Hinata said, much to the surprise of Neji and the others.

"I see," Tsuande said. "I have read all three of your CVs from your jonin and Academy senseis, and you all have excellent chakra control, keen minds and as you've just shown, the will to carry on. Very well, I will make you three my apprentices, but be warned I won't go easy on any of you and I expect that you will give your all."

"Hai sensei!" the three kunoichi cried together.

**A/N: This story idea has been floating around in my head and on my computer for a while now, ever since I started reading _Naruto_ fanfics. I've read a lot of Naruto Banished fics in which his friends turn on him because they aren't given the whole story, in this I tried to change this point. Hopefully, I've done a decent job. This story will most likely be a secondary story as I go along, since I'm starting to start too many new stories and not working on my current ones, I will correct this. Pairings are undecided though I'm leaning toward Naru/Saku, Naru/Hina or Naru/OC that I'll make up. Let me know what your opinions are, but please remember this is my story so I'll be making the final decisions. Also there are any similarities between this story and any other, that's a coincidence. There must likely will be some crossover with some other stories mainly because there's only so much you can do with this type of story. If you find something that is yours, tell me and I'll change it. Please read & review**


	2. Operation: Chunin

**Disclaimer: The _Naruto_ universe is NOT mine! I don't own any of it. I'm just having some fun completely messing it up and rearranging it into my own image.**

It had been fifteen years, fifteen years since he had set foot in his home village, no not his home village, but his birth village. For Namikaze-Uzumaki Naruto didn't consider anywhere except for the village he now looked out upon as his home. Naruto closed his eyes as his mind took him back to that fateful day.

_"Uzumaki Naruto, by the will of this Council and the Fire Daimyo, you are herby stripped of your ninja rank and banished from Konohagakure no Sato and Hi no Kuni for failing to complete your retrieval mission of Uchiha Sasuke, as well as the attempted murder of Uchiha Sasuke and for being a significant security risk to the village," Mitokada Homura said savagely, glaring down at the trembling blonde boy in front of him._

_ "You can't do this," Senju Tsuande, the Godaime Hokage, roared. "Only the Hokage has the right to strip a ninja of rank and banish them."_

_ "That's incorrect Tsuande-san," Danzo said. "If there is a majority on the council, that decision overrides the Hokage."_

_ "Is that all?" Naruto said softly._

_ "What was that _boy_?" Utatane Koharu snarled._

_ "I said, is that all?" Naruto said looking up at the Elders, his blue eyes an icy cold. "After everything I've done for this village, this is how you repay me. This doesn't surprise me that you're kicking me out, it's just that you waited this long."_

_ "What the hell are you talking about, all you've done to this village is bring death and destruction!" a civilian council member roared._

_ "Really, who have I actually hurt? Aside from the teme, who was deserting the village for an S-rank traitor in case you all forgot, and considering he tried to kill me, I think I was well within my rights to rough him up a bit. In fact, if I hadn't changed my aim at the last moment, there'd be one less Uchiha bastard running around the world."_

_ "So you admit that you tried to kill Uchiha-sama?" a pink-haired woman screeched. Naruto turned to face the woman, he recognized her as Sakura's mother._

_ "Does it really matter?" Naruto said dryly. "You're throwing me out anyway, so what's the point?"_

_ "The _demon_ has admitted guilt, kill him!" the woman screamed._

_ "You have no power here _civilian_," Naruto snarled. "So shut your banshee trap and listen for once."_

_ The room was silent; Tsuande and Jiraiya were looking at Naruto like they had never seen him._

_ "Now, if you recall, my mission was to retrieve Uchiha Sasuke and prevent him from joining Orochimaru by any means at my disposal," Naruto said. "So I was well within my rights and ORDERS BY THE HOKAGE to use lethal force on the traitor. Sasuke also used lethal force on me, two Chidori's in fact." Here Naruto lifted his shirt to revel the jagged scars across his chest, one above his left lung and the other over his stomach. The ninja side of the council was stunned at this. "In fact, if it weren't for the Kyubi, I'd be dead right now."_

_ "So you admit using the Kyubi's chakra in your attack on Uchiha Sasuke?" Danzo barked._

_ "Never said I didn't, I was forced too after the teme decided to use that hickey that the Hebi-teme gave him," Naruto said. "I know Kakashi-sensei put a seal on the hickey at the Chunin Exams, but no offense to Kakashi, why didn't Jiraiya-sama, who is a SEAL MASTER, take a look at it as well."_

_ "It wasn't needed, the seal that Hatake Kakashi was sufficient to hold back the curse seal's influence if the bearer's will is strong enough," Homaru said._

_ "Guess that means Sasuke was a pretty weak-willed bastard, considering he's used the curse seal three times since he got it," Naruto said. "The first time was in the Forest of Death right after Orochimaru gave it to him. The second was during the invasion of the Sand/Sound, when he tried to take on Gaara, though he seemed in command of it. And the third time is what we're talking about now."_

_ "What do you mean _tried to take on Gaara_, we have reports that it was Uchiha-sama who defeated the Sand's jinchuriki!" Sakura's mother screeched. Naruto burst out laughing at this._

_ "From whom! The only people who know what happened are the teme, Gaara, his siblings and myself. Sakura-chan was there, but she was unconscious from defending Sasuke."_

_ "LIES!" the woman screamed. "Uchiha-sama defeated that sand _demon_ and summoned the toad, Gamabunta!"_

_ "Are you kidding me!" Jiraiya and Naruto cried out. "That's got to be the biggest load a shit I've ever heard. That Uchiha brat couldn't summon a tadpole let alone Bunta," Jiraiya said. "I'm the current holder of the Toad contract and the only ones who have signed it who are alive today are myself and the gaki down there."_

_ Screams of outrage met this announcement, all of them coming from the civilian/elder side of the council. The clan heads were extremely impressed with Naruto, to be able to summon at his age was very advanced, and to summon the boss at that, made the decision to banish him all the more disgraceful._

_ "Look we're getting off track, you said that I'm being banished for failing to retrieve Sasuke, for trying to kill the bastard and for being a significant security risk to the village, right?" Naruto said. He got smug looks and nods at this. "Fine then, yes, I didn't manage to bring the teme back, but why aren't you banishing the other members of the team I was on, they failed the mission just as well."_

_ No one had an answer for this._

_ "Right, as I was the only one to actually engage Sasuke in combat, I freely admit that I thought about killing the bastard, and I was well within my rights as he had no qualms about killing me, then again my orders said that I could use any means to bring Sasuke back, didn't say he had to be alive. Now moving on to your last point, saying I'm a significant security risk to the village, how do you figure that?"_

_ "You are the Kyubi, there's no other reason!" a fat civilian councilmember roared from the stands._

_ "If I was truly the Kyubi, wouldn't I have razed this village to the ground long ago after all the shit that this village has given me," Naruto said, staring up at the man. "Beaten, mauled, stabbed, ridiculed, thrown out of shops and the orphanage when I was just 4, spit on and a whole lot more, yet the village is still standing."_

_ The ninja clan heads were disgusted at this, the boy was right. He had more than enough reason to go on a rampage, and be completely justified. It was a miracle that Naruto hadn't turned out like Gaara, bloodthirsty and murderous._

_ "If that's everything, I guess I'll just leave then since I'm no longer a citizen of Konoha or the Land of Fire," Naruto said. "Just be glad, now you don't have a jinchuriki to protect you if another village decides to attack."_

_ "Where do you think you're going _boy_?" Danzo roared._

_ "What's it look like you old geezer, I'm leaving."_

_ "You aren't going anywhere, until we've sealed your chakra away so that you can never perform another jutsu again," Danzo sneered wearing a victorious look. "ANBU restrain him!"_

_ "NO!" Tsuande cried out, she and Jiraiya made to move in but froze when they heard the strangest thing: Naruto was laughing._

_ "Danzo, you moron! Did you really think I'd be stupid enough to come here myself? I knew that you, the ancient hag and geezer would try something like this, so I came prepared."_

_ "What the hell are you talking about?" Kotane roared. "You're right there."_

_ "Man, for the wise village elder, you sure are stupid," Naruto said, with a broad smile. Jiraiya's eyes popped out of his head and he began laughing uproariously. "So you figured it out pervy-sage?"_

_ "Give them hell gaki," Jiraiya said._

_ "Always do," Naruto grinned. He turned back to the Elders. "Oh and don't even think of sending hunter-nins after me, since you stripped me of rank, I'm no longer a ninja and you can't. Ja ne!"_

_ Suddenly Naruto disappeared in a puff of smoke. _

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"Arashikage-sama, there is a messenger hawk here from Suna for you," a dark haired woman said as she entered the office.

"Thank you Kasumi-chan," a blonde haired man said. He turned from his viewing of the village back to the interior of the office. It was a sparsely decorated office with only a couple photos, two book cases littered with scrolls and a light blue cloak that was thrown over the large chair that sat behind the desk.

This office was that of Uzumaki-Namikaze Naruto, the Shodaime Arashikage of the Arashigakure no Sato (Village Hidden by Storms). He had helped create this village amongst the ruins of his mother's homeland, Uzushiogakure. It had taken him nearly a decade but finally the village was fully operational. The messenger hawk that Kasumi had announced was from Suna, the Chunin Exams were being held there and this time was the first time that genin teams from Arashi would be attending. He had sent three teams to the Exams, each of them were very talented and Naruto had no doubt that at least on of the teams would make it to the final round. Taking the scroll that Kasumi had left on the desk, he unsealed it and opened it. Quickly reading the contents, a satisfied smile broke across his face. Several of his genin had made the third and final round of the Chunin Exams. It seems the Suna had decided to follow in Konoha's footsteps about how they ran their Chunin Exams, the third round would be a round-robin tournament that was to be hosted in Suna's arena in a month's time.

"Well done brats," Naruto muttered to himself. The teams would return to Arashi within a few days, have two weeks to train and then would return to Suna. "When they get back, I'll have to talk with their senseis about what training they'll need as well as who they are facing." A note at the end of the scroll mentioned that several Konoha ninja had also made the finals. '_So the old hag will be attending the Finals,'_ he thought. '_Should be an interesting time then._'

"Shodai-sama, the genin teams and their senseis have returned," Kasumi said as she entered the office.

"Bring them in," Naruto ordered as he spun his chair around. Looking out over the village was a favorite pastime of his, much like it had been when he would sit upon his father's stone head back in Konoha. The office door opened and three Arashi jonin entered with their teams.

"Welcome back everyone," Naruto said. "Congratulations are in order for several of you, well done Eiji-kun, Mai-chan, Hitomi-chan and Kenshin-kun, you have brought much honor to the village and I know that you will do us proud in the Finals in one month's time. Now, I'm sure that your senseis have already come up with a training schedule for each of you, and I'm sure that you would love to see your families so you are dismissed but I would like to see each of you here tomorrow morning 9am sharp. There are some training tips that I think would serve you well in the Finals."

"Hai Arashikage-sama," the four genin said in unison.

"Good then," Naruto said with a smile. "Now get out of here brats."

The assembled genin left, leaving Naruto with the jonin senseis. Naruto looked them over, they were among the first ninja that he had recruited to join the village. They were all survivors from the Bloodline Massacres that plagued Kirigakure and Mizu no Kuni; the Bloodline rebels had lost the rebellion and had to flee into the wilderness.

"Report," Naruto ordered, his voice gaining an edge of command that several others had dubbed his 'Kage' voice.

A tall dark brown haired man stepped forward. "Lord Arashikage, as you instructed we each nominated our genin teams to participate in this year's Chunin Exam," the man said. This was Kawabata Masanori, a former jonin of Kiri whose ability to wield the Hyouton element much like Haku had been able too. He had helped Naruto learn to wield two of his elemental affinities, wind and water. "By using our teams' entrance into the Exams, we were able to gather information on the other villages, mainly Konoha and Suna, as they are both currently at odds with Kumo, Iwa and Kiri. This tension has been building for several years now and it looks like war is on the horizon. The main instigator in this conflict seems to be the former Konoha nin and Snake Sannin Orochimaru. He has expanded his influence into setting up governments loyal to him in both Kumo and Kiri; Iwa has been looking for payback against Konoha since the last war and what the Yondaime Hokage did to them."

Naruto nodded. "So then was the mission successful?" he asked.

"Hai Lord Shodaime," Masanori said. "It seems that Orochimaru isn't one for originality. It seems that he is planning on another invasion, this time against Suna. As you must know, Orochimaru is one who will carry a grudge for a lifetime. He is still smarting from the failed invasion of Konoha fifteen years ago. This time he hopes to make a strike at the head of Konoha, by killing the Hokage away from the village, where security will be lessened. Iwa and Kumo have several genin that have made it into the Finals, so both the Raikage and Tsuchikage will be in attendance."

"I see, so the Hebi-Teme is gathering all his allies in one place and is hoping to kill Tsunade and most likely Gaara," Naruto said. "I believe it's time for the other nations to see the power of Arashigakure. Masanori, Minori, Eiko, Sayuki, I want you to run your teams through the gauntlet. Make sure they are all at chunin-level or higher if possible. I want us to be ready to aid Konoha and Suna when the time comes, I won't let Orochimaru take another precious person from me."

"Hai Arashikage-sama," the assembled jonin barked.

"Dismissed," Naruto said.

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Senju Tsunade looked out from her office in the Hokage Tower out across Konohagakure no Sato. She had been Hokage for nearly sixteen years now, though the last fifteen had been extremely boring. After the Council banished Uzumaki Naruto, she had nearly up and left the village again, only Jiraiya's insistence and the fact that she had three apprentices to look over. A small smile graced her lips as she thought back to her former apprentices; each had grown into splendid ninja. Haruno Sakura, Hyuga Hinata and Yamanaka Ino each had grown leagues under Tsunade's tutelage, each were now jonin. Sakura was the Deputy Head of Konoha General Hospital, Hinata was now the Hyuga clan head, as well as a B-ranked ninja in the Bingo books, and Ino was second in command of the T&I Department behind only Anko who had taken over for Ibiki when the older jonin retired.

Tsunade also disbanded the civilian council in ninja affairs, citing that Konoha was a ninja village. This didn't sit well with the Elders but there wasn't much they could do, as Tsunade was right. The civilians however had banded together and created their own Council, and had been fighting Tsunade ever since. Under the 'leadership' of the Elders, the new civilian council had started a 'war' with the shinobi of the village, raising prices on nearly everything from food, supplies and even metals that were imported to be used to make weapons for the ninja. Tensions had been running high for years as the line between shinobi and civilian had become clearer and clearer.

"Tsunade-sama, are you ready?" her first apprentice, Shizune, asked as the dark-haired jonin entered the office. "It is time to depart for Suna."

"Hai," Tsunade sighed. "What happened to this place Shizune? This village is about to fall apart; the civilians have grown too arrogant since the time of the Yondaime. Now look at this village, we're facing a civil war between the shinobi and civilian alike. If something isn't done soon, Konoha will cease to exist."

"Don't blame yourself Tsunade-sama," Shizune said. "None of this is your fault. It is all Danzo and the Elders' fault. They grew too powerful; Sandaime-sama should have done something to stop them."

"Yes sensei grew complacent in his old age," Tsunade said. "He felt that everything would work out after the Kyuubi attack. But he underestimated Danzo and those two old wind bags."

"Tsunade-sama, it's time to leave," another voice called through the door. A slender pink-haired woman stepped through the open office door.

"I'm coming Sakura-chan," Tsunade said wearily.

"Everyone is ready and waiting to depart," Sakura said.

"Let's get this over with," Tsunade said. The trio of kunoichi made their way down from the Hokage Tower and toward the front gate of the village. A large group of ninja were waiting for them including Hatake Kakashi, Maito Gai, Rock Lee, Nara Shikamaru, Akimichi Choji, Mitarashi Anko and their three genin teams. Five genin of the three teams had made it to the finals but the other members decided unanimously to accompany their teammates in a show of Konoha teamwork.

"Tsunade-hime, are you sure you should be leaving the village?" Jiraiya asked as he appeared at Tsunade's side. "What about Danzo and those two wind bags? They might try something while you're out of the village."

"So?" Tsunade snapped. "The village that my grandfather and great uncle fought and died for is long dead. It died when Danzo and the Council decided to banish the greatest hero that this village has ever known. Also, you know as well as I do, that there is a new village out there, Gaara sent a messenger hawk saying that nearly half of the finalists were from this new village that has just sprung up over night. And I want to know who they are and where they've come from. We need allies."

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It was three days later when the Konoha contingent arrived at the entrance to Sunagakure. They were met by two familiar faces, Sabaku no Temari and Sabaku no Kankoru.

"Welcome to Sunagakure Hokage-sama," Temari said, bowing to Tsunade. "It is nice to see you again."

"Thank you Temari-san," Tsunade said. "May I ask where Gaara-san is? I thought he would be meeting us?"

"The Kazekage is in a meeting with the Arashikage," Kankoru said.

"Arashikage?" Tsunade asked sharply. "What's going on?"

"As you most likely already know that this year there are some new ninja that have made their first appearance at the Chunin Exams," Temari said. "They say they hail from Arashigakure no Sato."

"The Village Hidden by the Storms, eh?" Tsunade said. "Is it possible to meet with this so-called 'Arashikage'?"

"That shouldn't be a problem," Temari said. "He's asked to see each of the visiting Kages?"

Tsunade froze. "Each of them? Even the Tsuchikage and Raikage?" she asked, somewhat afraid of the answer. If this new player was meeting with those two, it didn't bode well for Konoha's chances of gaining an alliance with this new village, though the fact that he was meeting with Gaara gave hope to Tsunade's flagging hope. "I see, well then would you give this Arashikage a message that I would like to speak to him at his earliest convenience?"

"Of course Hokage-sama, now if you and your group would follow us, Kankoru and I will take you to your lodgings," Temari said. Tsunade nodded. The Konoha group followed two of the Sand siblings through the village until they came upon a large hotel.

"This is where you all will be staying," Temari said. "Each of the visiting Kages and their entourages has their own compound. We felt that this would be better as Kumo, Iwa and Konoha aren't on the best terms right now. No need to have Suna turn into a war zone."

Tsunade and the others chuckled nervously. The thin attempt at humor did little to settle the fraying nerves. "Temari-san, when should the Kazekage be available as well as this Arashikage?" Tsunade asked.

"I'm not sure," Temari said. "But I will rely your request to speak with both of them, I do think that you should be able to speak with Gaara later at least."

"Thank you Temari-san," Tsunade said with a slight bow.

"It's no trouble," Temari said. "I'll let you all get settled."

"Tsunade-sama, are you sure it is wise to be meeting with this Arashikage person? I mean, if he's meeting with the Tsuchikage and Raikage, shouldn't we consider him an enemy?" Sakura asked as she, Tsunade, Kakashi and the other jonin settled into the main sitting room.

"Not necessarily," Kakashi said. "Just because he is speaking with the Tsuchikage and Raikage doesn't mean he'll become an enemy. He could be just scoping out the competition for the exams, Temari-san did say that he had several of his ninja in the finals."

"Kakashi is right," Tsunade said. "We should hold off on condemning the man until we meet with him."

It wasn't until the next morning that Tsunade was able to gain an audience with Gaara.

"Thank you for seeing me Kazekage-dono," Tsunade said.

"Of course Hokage-dono," Gaara said stoically. "What can I do for you?"

"I was wondering what you could tell me about this Arashikage person? I'll admit that when I heard you were meeting with him, I was quite surprised, especially when your sister told us that this Arashikage person was also meeting with the Tsuchikage and Raikage. Doesn't that seem somewhat suspicious?"

"I can see your fear," Gaara said. "However, the Arashikage is only reaching out to each Kage each in an attempt to gain a better understanding of our relations with each other's villages. His village is very young, yet it seems to be quite strong judging from the amount of finalists that hail from his village, nearly as many as that come from either Konoha or Suna."

Tsunade nodded. "You must now that the Tsuchikage and Raikage are in leagues with Orochimaru," she said. "I believe that Orochimaru is planning something, something that doesn't bode well for our villages."

"I know," Gaara said. "The Arashikage has spoken of such things."

"What!" Tsunade cried.

"The Arashikage has somehow amassed a very extensive intelligence network, and has found information that Kumo, Kiri and Iwa has joined forces and are going to try an attack on Suna during the finals of the Exams."

"Orochimaru isn't very original is he?" Tsunade quipped. Gaara shook his head. "But how could this Arashikage know of this plot? Jiraiya hasn't found anything."

"As I said, the Arashikage has amassed quite the extensive spy network," Gaara said. "He has given me his word that Arashi will not raise a weapon against Suna or Konoha except in defense of his own village."

"Who is this Arashikage? For you to immediately trust him, he must be someone you know well," Tsunade said.

"I have given my word that I will not divulge his identity under any circumstance," Gaara said. "I'm sure that he will revel himself in time."

Tsunade nodded slowly. "I wish to speak with him then, I know that you trust him Gaara," she said. "But I can't just take your word alone, I'm sorry."

"You must do what you must," Gaara said. "I will set up a meeting between you two, most likely tonight as the Finals start tomorrow and there isn't much time."

"Thank you Lord Kazekage," Tsunade said with a bow. "I will take my leave." Gaara nodded. Tsunade rose from her seat and walked from the office. On her way out of the Kazekage Tower, she noticed several unfamiliar ninja walking by. It looked like several jonin-senseis and their genin teams. She realized that the ninja were from this new village, Arashigakure no Sato, as their hitai-ate's bore a strange symbol that didn't match any of the Five Great Nations'. It looked like a swirl, similar to the Leaf's but with a lightning bolt through it.

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"Tsunade-sama, there is someone here to see you," Sakura called from the front door of the Konoha contingent's compound. "He says he's the Arashikage."

"Send him in," Tsunade answered. A moment later, a tall brown haired man entered the sitting room, trailing Sakura who stepped aside to allow him to enter.

"Thank you for seeing me Lady Hokage," the man said with a bow. "You do me great honor."

"So you are the mysterious Arashikage?" Tsunade asked, gesturing to the chair in front of her. "Please have a seat."

"Thank you Hokage-sama," Naruto said with a small smile. It was taking all that he had to not break out the 'baa-chan' when he first saw her but this wasn't the time to revel himself. It was the just as bad seeing Sakura after all these years, he had to desperately hold back from scooping the pink haired woman in a massive hug. "Now what would you like to talk about?"

"Who exactly are you?" Tsunade asked bluntly.

"Ah a Kage who doesn't mince words," Naruto said with a smile. "Now that's something you don't see everyday. Well Hokage-sama, my name is Daikonran Hiruzen, the Shodaime Arashikage."

Tsunade's eyebrow rose at the man's name. "Yes, my tou-san named me after your sensei," Naruto said. "He respected the Sandaime very much."

"I see," Tsunade said. "You call yourself a Kage, yet I've never heard of your village before a week ago."

"I understand your feelings that I might be making a mockery of the Gokage, but I assure you that while my village is fairly new and might not be as strong as the Five Great Nation, it would behoove you to not underestimate my ninja. They know what it means to be strong and each of them have a driving urge to prove themselves."

Tsunade's eyes widened as she felt the passion behind Hiruzen's voice. "What is this about you speaking with the Tsuchikage and the Raikage?" Tsunade asked sharply. "You must realize that they are in league with Orochimaru!"

"That I do," Naruto said solemnly. "But you must know that I can't alienate potential allies just because of who they are rumored to be working with."

"RUMORED TO BE WORKING WITH!" Tsunade roared. "You were the one who told Gaara that Orochimaru was going to attack Suna! Or was that just a lie to get an audience with him?" she spat.

Naruto shook his head. "No Lady Hokage," he said. "Orochimaru is planning something, and while I believe that he will attack during the Finals of the Chunin Exams, I don't know if Iwa and Kumo are totally in league with Orochimaru. Kiri, I have learned is actively harboring elements of Orochimaru's village. Kumo and Iwa might just be sitting back and waiting to take advantage. Both Saitou and Kasaya are very selfish and power hungry people but they do care for their villages, and would be willing to do anything to protect their people, something that I respect greatly."

Tsunade looked flabbergasted at Hiruzen's statement. "You can't be serious! They are evil; all they care about is power. They want to destroy the power balance between the Five Great Nations!"

"In your opinion, it might seem that way," Naruto said evenly, leveling a cool glare at Tsunade. "I'm sure that they feel the same way about Konoha, how the Leaf has been atop the power ladder for years now, and I'm sure you don't want that to change. So what's so different about your two villages? I have heard plenty of rumors that your village's Council will do nearly anything to stay in power, even going as far as threatening a civil war between the shinobi and civilian citizens of your village."

"How do you know that?" Tsunade cried, leaping to her feet.

"As Lord Kazekage must have told you, my village has a quite extensive intelligence network," Naruto said. "Nearly everyone in the Elemental Nations have heard of how the Sandaime's former teammates are as power mad as the Tsuchikage and the Raikage." Tsunade froze at Hiruzen's comment, and then sagged back into her seat. "I'm sorry if this answer doesn't please you Tsunade-sama but it is an answer that you needed to know."

Tsunade nodded numbly. "I apologize for my outburst," she said. "I understand what you mean and yes, _Danzo_ _and those windbags_ have been given to much leeway, my sensei should have put them down years ago but they have garnered too much support from the civilian half of our population. You probably know that I dismissed Konoha's civilian council several years ago because they were trying take over the village and make the Hokage little more than a figurehead. I told them that Konoha was a _ninja_ village, and that the only reason they had any power was because my sensei didn't enforce the separation between ninja and civilian affairs that my grandfather set up when he helped create Konoha."

"I see," Naruto said. "Well hopefully you'll be able to take control of your village. Maybe you should allow the civilians to have day in the spotlight and just move all the shinobi that you know are loyal to you out of the village."

"I can't just abandon Konoha!" Tsunade cried. "My grandfather, great uncle and sensei all gave their lives for the village…"

"And what exactly has the village done to repay you?" Naruto argued. "The civilians and your council of Elders have possibly committed treason, you are the Hokage, the supreme authority in your village. If you don't have the strength to use that authority then you are a piss poor example of an Hokage."

Tsunade scowled at Hiruzen but after a moment all the fight seemed to seep out of her. "You're right," she said. "My grandfather and great uncle would be ashamed of how I've handled being Hokage. I've let the civilians run rampart and trampled their dreams. It's just I don't know if Konoha is really worth saving. It has taken so much from me; my fiancé, my little brother and my…godson."

"I see," Naruto said. "I am sorry for your loss and it is up to you for what you do from here on out but do think about this. Will your loved ones understand your choice? Would your grandfather and great uncle understand if you were to leave Konoha to its fate? Can you live with your choice? The only opinion you need to worry about is that of yourself and those who you deem important." Tsunade looked at 'Naruto' for a moment before nodding. "Now I believe that I should take my leave, we have a big day ahead of us as well as the ninja under our command, don't we?" Tsunade nodded once more. "Oh, I do have one request, if Orochimaru is in the village, let me handle the snake. I have personal business with that snake."

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The morning of the finals of the Chunin Exams dawned bright and clear over the village of Sunagakure. While the weather seemed to be perfect, a blanket of tension had fallen over the village that most of the ninja could nearly taste. Slowly the Suna Chunin Exam stadium began filling up with both civilians and ninja, attending to see the finals of the Chunin Exams.

"So Eiji-kun, Mai-chan, Hitomi-chan, Kenshin-kun are you ready to show off Arashi's strength?" Naruto asked his chunin hopefuls.

"Hai Arashikage-sama!" the four young ninja cried. Naruto gave them a broad smile.

"Excellent, now you four should make your way over to the stadium," Naruto said. "Your teammates are waiting outside to go with you. One thing of advice, if you are paired off against a Konoha or Suna ninja, win but don't show your hands too much. Kumo or Iwa opponent, take them down hard and fast."

The four chunin-hopefuls filed out of the room after a bow to their leader, leaving Naruto with the four jonin-senseis of the teams. Naruto's face instantly hardened once the door closed. "You all know your jobs, correct?" he asked sharply.

"Hai Arashikage-sama," the four jonin snapped.

"Good, now I don't believe this will be an invasion," Naruto said. "More of a surgical strike against Konoha and Suna, so Tsunade and Gaara are our top priority. They both can take care of themselves but Orochimaru hasn't survived this long by luck alone. If there is an attack, gather your teams and assist Konoha and Suna. Be careful of Kumo and Iwa though, after meeting with the Tsuchikage and the Raikage, I wouldn't past them to try and take advantage of whatever might happen."

"Hai Arashikage-sama!"

"Masanori, Sayuki-chan, would you mind staying behind?" Naruto asked as he dismissed the jonin. The two jonin nodded and turned back to their leader. "You two will be with me up in the Kage box during the competition. You will be keeping on eye on the Tsuchikage and the Raikage's bodyguards, the last time Orochimaru had the Sound Four disguised as just two ninja."

"Hai Arashikage-sama," the two jonin responded.

"Let's get moving," Naruto said. "We don't want to be late for the show."

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"Welcome Lord Arashikage," Gaara said. "How are you enjoying Suna so far?"

"Much different from my own village," Naruto answered. "Much drier and warmer." Gaara nodded. "I see that I'm the first to arrive."

"Yes," Gaara said. "Tsunade-sama, the Tsuchikage and the Raikage should be here in a moment. I hope that your genin are ready, they must be nervous as this is their first Chunin Exam, let alone it being your village's first Exam as well."

"Oh I'm sure that they'll do fine," Naruto said with a grin. "I trust their senseis with my life and know that the brats want to prove themselves and our village is capable of going against the best that the Five Great Nations have to offer."

Gaara nodded. The sound of footsteps echoed up the staircase behind them. Naruto and Gaara turned to see Tsunade walking up the stairs to the Kage Box with her two bodyguards; Kakashi and Gai.

"Lady Hokage," Naruto said with a bow. "You're making a statement with those two as your bodyguards; Sharingan no Kakashi and taijutsu master Maito Gai. Two of Konoha's best and most powerful ninja."

Tsunade gave Hiruzen a small smile and nod. "These two are my most trusted ninja," she said. "And I know that Saitou and Kasaya will have their best two here as well. They can't help showing off whenever the nations are together."

A deep laugh echoed up from the stairs behind the three Kages. It was Saitou Takeshi and Kasaya Fumio, the Tsuchikage and Raikage respectively. Two bodyguards flanked them each.

"Well then, it looks like we are all here," Takeshi said with a smug grin. "Lord Kazekage, Lady Hokage, Hiruzen-san."

"Raikage-sama, Tsuchikage-sama," Naruto said with a small bow, ignoring the slight against his title. "I do hope that you are ready for your genin to lose," he added with a wry grin.

Fumio snorted. "Pitiful brat," he growled. "You think your weak children can stand up to one of the Great Five Nations."

"I have faith in my brats," Naruto said. "I'm sure they'll put on a good show."

"Shall we begin then?" Takeshi asked, turning to Gaara who nodded slightly.

**A/N: As you can see, I've gone back and drastically changed up this story. Looking back over it, and seeing several reviews left by concerned readers, _Rebirth_ is much too like Dragon6's _Mizukage_ or Aragon Potter's _The Raikage_. I normally would think that being compared to those two stories, which are some of the best fanfics around, would be great. However, I am nowhere near their level, and I also felt that I was following much too closely to the plots of those two. So this is the first chapter of the rebirth of _Swirling Tides: Wrath of the Storm_. Enjoy!**

**S.R.W.M.O**


	3. Creeping Shadows

**Disclaimer: _Naruto_ doesn't belong to me, I am making no money or anything other than personal pride by doing this.**

"Welcome shinobi and honored guests alike to Suna Arena for this year's Chunin Selection Exam Final competition," Gaara said, his voice echoing throughout the entire stadium. "I ask that you please stay until the competition has been completed. Now we will meet the candidates for advancement."

Below in the stadium, a large wooden door opened and a dirty blonde haired man led a group of sixteen genin out into the middle of the stadium floor. Four were from Konoha, four from Arashi, three from Kumo, three from Iwa and two from Suna. Naruto grinned and waved down at his genin. Someone snorted beside him and he saw the Tsuchikage shaking his head at Naruto, who just shrugged it off.

"The first match will between Fukuda Mai of Arashigakure and Goto Hachiro of Kumogakure," the proctor announced. "Hajime!"

Mai leapt backward as she grabbed several kunai and shuriken from her pouch and flung them at Hachiro before calling out two separate jutsus. "_**Ninpou: Kage Shuriken Bunshin no Jutsu! Ninpou: Kage Kunai Bunshin no Jutsu!**_" The five kunai and five shuriken multiplied into thirty of each.

Hachiro quickly weaved several hand signs and called out, "_**Futon: Atsugai!**_" (Wind Release: Pressure Damage.) A large windblast shot from Hachiro's mouth and scattered the incoming weapons.

"You're going to have to do much better than that to have a chance at beating me," Hachiro scoffed. "I'm from Kumo bitch, and you're just some lowly scab from some second-right village!"

"_**Magen: **__**Kokuangyo no Jutsu!**_" Mai cried out. Hachiro's laughter fell silent as darkness engulfed his senses. (Genjutsu: False Darkness.)

"Do you really think that a simple genjutsu would save you?" Hachiro jeered as he regained his composure. It wasn't every day that you went 'blind'. "_Kai!_" he shouted. The darkness wavered for a moment then disappeared. Hachiro quickly scanned the stadium looking for Mai. "There you are!" he cried as Mai appeared out of the darkness. Hachiro sped forward, drawing his sword and raising it above his head in preparation for an overhead slash. Mai raised a kunai in an attempt to block the strike.

Hachiro's sword suddenly glowed white. "You think a measly kunai will be able to stop my sword, especially now that it's charged up with wind chakra," the boy sneered. "You're pathetic!" he cried, slashing down at the young girl. The kunai held for a moment but the finely sharpened wind chakra quickly cut through the black metal. Mai cried out in pain as the kunai gave way and Hachiro continued his strike, slicing through Mai's shirt, flesh and bone. A fountain of blood sprayed from the now-limp girl, covering Hachiro who just sneered down at the body.

"Pathetic," he growled, spitting on the ground. He turned toward the proctor but froze when he felt the cold sting of a blade against his throat. The body of 'Mai' shimmered for a moment then dissolved into nothing.

"Surrender!" the cold voice of Fukuda Mai said sharply from behind Hachiro.

"How?" he blustered, as his mind worked frantically to find a way out of this.

"Genjutsu," Mai answered simply. "Now forfeit, or I won't hesitate to slit your throat for insulting my village."

"I forfeit," Hachiro growled after Mai pressed her kunai against his throat tighter, drawing a thin line of blood.

"Winner: Fukuda Mai of Arashikage!" the proctor cried out. Mai returned the kunai to her pouch and made her way back up to the viewing platform where her teammates congratulated.

"Looks like Mai has worked on her genjutsu," Naruto commented glancing at the Raikage who looked like he had just swallowed a lemon. "Too bad we didn't get to see much of your ninja Raikage-dono."

Tsunade and Gaara had to hide grins as Fumio woodenly returned Naruto's grin. "Yes," Fumio growled. "It seems that Hachiro underestimated your girl Hiruzen-san. That is a deadly mistake to all ninja regardless of their skill level."

"Oh I quite agree," Naruto said. "Looks like we'll get to see one of your ninja Tsuchikage-dono," Naruto continued as an young woman wearing an Iwa headband made her way down to the stadium floor where she was met by a black haired boy with a Suna hitai-ate around his chest like a bandolier. "Iwa vs. Suna? This should be interesting."

"Yes," the Tsuchikage, Takeshi, said. "Ijiri Emiko is one of our most promising young ninja, a prodigy in manipulating her earth element."

"I always hated that word 'prodigy'," Naruto commented. "It puts those labeled by it on a pedestal. It demeans those who work hard for their strength, in many villages those who are 'prodigies' are normally given everything in order to make themselves seem stronger then their companions. Hard work will be talent any day."

"Please," Fumio scoffed. "Talent will win out always."

"I'm not sure," Gaara said. "I remember a good friend of mine, Uzumaki Naruto, was the dead last of his graduating class and yet he remains the only person to have beaten me in single combat."

"Oh yes, I remember hearing about this Uzumaki," Takeshi said. "Wasn't he banished by Konoha some years ago." Tsunade flinched at the cruel reminder of her favorite gaki. "Wasn't he and several others sent after the last 'loyal' Uchiha when the brat made to defect to Orochimaru, and then when they failed Uzumaki was the one who was blamed for its failure?"

"Unfortunately you are correct Tsuchikage-dono," Tsunade said with her head bowed. "Our village's Council has had its power go to their heads and overstepped their bounds when they banished Naruto. By the time I could do anything about it, it was too late."

"Looks like they are about to begin," Naruto said. "Why don't we sit back and watch who will come out on top?"

"The next match, between Ijiri Emiko of Iwagakure and Masuzoe Toshio of Sunagakure will now begin!" the proctor shouted. "Hajime!"

Toshio surged forward, his hands blurring through several hand signs. Several ropes of dirt from the stadium floor and flowed up to encase Toshio's hands.

"Oh ho!" Takeshi chuckled. "It seems that your ninja has been trying to copy his betters, eh Kazekage-dono. But using the earth to improve your taijutsu is something that Iwa has been doing for years, and Emiko might not look it but she is one of my most promising students."

"You personally trained her, Takeshi-sama?" Naruto asked, an eyebrow arching in surprise.

"Her father was a good friend of mine," Takeshi said. "And before he was killed, he asked me to watch out for his daughter."

Naruto nodded.

"_**Doton: Kengan no Jutsu!**_" Emiko cried out as stones erupted from the ground and encased her own fists. Emiko ducked under a right cross from Toshio and returned with an uppercut of her own. Toshio used his height to his advantage and caught the stone fist of Emiko with his own.

"You're going to have to do better than that," Toshio said, looking down at the smaller girl. "ARGH!" Toshio cried as the girl he was holding quickly crumbled into dust and out of the corner of his eye, Toshio saw Emiko charge at him from the side and land a crushing blow to his side. Toshio skidded to a stop just feet from the wall of the stadium, and gingerly got to his feet

"_**Doton: Ganchuusou!**_" Emiko shouted. Twenty stone spears erupted around Toshio, who somehow was able to evade each and every spear.

"_**Doton: Dochuu Eigyo!**_" Toshio cried. Slowly he sunk into the stadium floor, disappearing from sight.

"Don't think you can hide from me Suna scum?" Emiko snarled. She knelt down and placed a finger on the floor. "_**Chakra Myakuhaku!**_"

Naruto blinked as he recognized the jutsu. "Clever," he muttered.

"Gotcha!" Emiko shouted, spinning around and her hands blurring through several hand signs. "_**Doton: Ganchuurou no Jutsu!**_" she shouted. Two-dozen stone pillars erupted from the stadium floor about twenty feet away from Emiko.

"AH!" Toshio cried out, as he was propelled twenty feet into the air by the stone pillars caused by Emiko's jutsu.

"_**Doton: **__**Gansetsukon no Jutsu!**_" Emiko roared. A large stone spear grew from the stadium floor at Emiko's side. She gripped it and broke it off, giving herself a five-foot long spear. "Time for you to die," she shouted before heaving the spear up at Toshio. Toshio rolled over just as the earthen spear reached him; it missed scoring a direct hit but managed to scour a large cut along his side. Toshio crashed to the ground in a heap, clutching his injured side.

"_**Doton: Doryuu Heki!**_" Toshio shouted. A ten foot high earthen wall shot up from the ground and shielded Toshio from another _**Gansetsukon**_ thrown by Emiko. The spear pierced nearly completely through the wall.

"That pitiful excuse for a _**Doton**_ jutsu won't save you for long," Emiko shouted. She made several hand signs and shouted out another jutsu, "_**Doton: Ganchuusou!**_" Behind the earthen wall, stone spears erupted from the ground. "It's over," Emiko said turning her back to the grisly sight of Toshio being suspended in mid air by several stone spikes.

"Not quite," a quiet voice whispered behind her. Whirling around, Emiko's vision exploded into stars as Toshio's fist impacted her cheek.

"How!" Emiko cried as she leapt to her feet, wiping the blood away from the cut on her forehead.

"_**Suna Bunshin**_," Toshio said easily. The 'Toshio' that had been skewered by the rock spears was quickly dispersing back into sand. "All Suna ninja know that one."

With a roar that was more suited to a tiger or lion, Emiko surged forward, whipping out a kunai from her pouch. Toshio parried the knife thrust and returned with one of his own. The ninjutsu battle that had wowed the crowd quickly descended into a taijutsu brawl, with each ninja exchanging heavy blows. The crowd began to really get into the fight as the two genin wailed on each other.

"Why won't you stay down?" Emiko snarled as she ducked under a kunai strike from the taller genin.

"I can't afford to lose here," Toshio said. "I promised my nii-san that I would win this and I never want to disappoint my little brother."

"That's it!" Emiko scoffed. "You're fighting this hard just for your nii-san!"

"Hai, and because of that, I can't let you win here," Toshio said as he threw several kunai at Emiko and then called out, "_**Kunai Kage Bunshin no jutsu!**_" The kunai multiplied into nearly thirty.

Emiko quickly raised a _**Doton: Doryuu Heki**_ to protect herself.

"That's it," Toshio grunted. "I'm done." He fell to his butt, panting heavily.

"WHAT!" Emiko cried.

"I'm out of chakra after that last combo," he said.

"What combo?" Suddenly about a dozen stone pillars appeared, surrounding Emiko and pinning her hands away from her body.

"_**Doton: Ganchuurou no Jutsu!**_" Toshio chuckled. "I forced you into that spot because I set up a seal that would release that jutsu when someone tripped the seal."

"Winner Masuzoe Toshio," the proctor announced to the wild cheers coming from the crowd.

"Well, it seems that your prodigy failed in the end Tsuchikage-dono," Naruto said with a smile.

"Yes," Takeshi growled out. "Most unexpected, Emiko is one of our most promising ninja. She spoke of breezing through this competition and becoming a Chunin."

"Well, it seems that Emiko-chan decided to underestimate her opponent," Naruto said. "Much like Hachiro-kun did to his opponent."

Takeshi and Fumio growled under their breathes while Gaara and Tsunade hid smiles.

"Next match will between Hyuga Hitomi from Konohagakure and Hiranuma Seiji from Kumogakure," the proctor called out.

Tsunade frowned at the pairing. It wasn't a secret that the Hyuga clan hated Kumo for their attempts on Hinata's life over twenty years ago, as well as their audacity to blame Konoha when the Kumo ninja was killed. The Kumo ninja leapt down to the stadium floor, looking excited while Hitomi made her way down at a more sedated pace.

"Come on white eye," Seiji shouted. "Get a move on, I can't wait to beat your freaky ass!"

Tsunade, Gaara and Hiruzen frowned at the loudmouthed Kumo genin while the Tsuchikage and Raikage grinned.

"The match between Hyuga Hitomi and Hiranuma Seiji will now begin," the proctor shouted. "Hajime!"

Seiji rocketed across the stadium floor at mid-Chunin speed. Hitomi leapt backward trying to gain space from the hard-charging Kumo ninja but Seiji didn't let up. The blonde haired boy drew his dual swords and began slashing wildly at the retreating Hyuga. Hitomi reached back, drew a scroll from her back and she quickly unsealed it. A rush of water emerged from the scroll.

"_**Suiton: Sujiinheki no Jutsu!**_" Hitomi cried out to the stunned amazement of the crowd. A wall of water rose from the stadium floor and blocked the sword strikes. Hitomi leapt backward to gain space.

"A Hyuga using ninjutsu!" Naruto exclaimed. "Now there's something you don't see everyday."

"Yes," Tsunade with a smile. "Hitomi's sensei didn't want to limit her by not teaching her ninjutsu."

"That probably didn't go over to well with the Hyuga clan," Hiruzen chuckled. "I heard that the Hyuga clan is nearly fanatical about their ninja only using the Byakugan and Juken."

"Well, some weren't very happy about that but her sensei was adamant about it," Tsunade said.

"Who's Hitomi-chan's sensei?" Naruto asked.

"Mitarashi Anko."

Naruto's laugh shocked the Tsuchikage and Raikage, while Gaara raised an eyebrow. "The Hebi Okami of Konoha is training a Hyuga! Oh that's amazing. I know that didn't sit well with the Hyuga Elders."

Tsunade chuckled. "I still remember their faces when Anko showed up at a Council meeting," she said.

"An Anko-trained Hyuga," Naruto said. "This should be very interesting."

"While a Hyuga using ninjutsu is unexpected, it is still not enough," Fumio sneered. "Seiji is very talented user of both _**Raiton**_ and _**Suiton**_ jutsus. Your Hyuga doesn't stand a chance."

"So you use ninjutsu, that won't be enough to beat me," Seiji shouted. He paused for a moment, and then lightning arched up and down his blades. "You won't get away from me again!" Seiji slashed at Hitomi, who leapt backward though the lightning-enhanced sword strike caught her across the stomach. Hitomi cried out as she clutched her stomach. Seiji didn't let up as he continued slashing away at Hitomi.

Hitomi ducked and weaved in an attempt to avoid the sword strikes, though she couldn't dodge them all. Soon her clothes were ripped and tattered, barely hanging together.

"You're pathetic!" Seiji sneered. "You think that with your all-seeing eyes you are invincible. Well I'm going to show you how wrong you are!" He leapt after Hitomi once more, swords raised for a devastating strike.

"_**Hakkesho Kaiten!**_" Hitomi shouted. Suddenly the Hyuga was surrounded by a large amount chakra. Seiji's sword strikes clanged against the chakra shroud. However, slowly the chakra shroud began to fall apart as Hitomi's jutsu began to fail. Seiji grinned as he forced more chakra into his blades.

"This is it!" Seiji roared as his lightning encased blades sliced through the rapidly failing jutsu. Hitomi screamed as Seiji's blades pierced her shoulder and stomach, lightning chakra raced through her body.

"Winner Hiranuma Seiji of Kumogakure!" the proctor shouted. "Medics!" A squad of four medical ninja came racing out to the stadium floor. They quickly put Hitomi on the stretcher and took her away to the infirmary.

"Next match is between Nara Nobu of Konohagakure versus Aburame Shou of Konohagakure," the proctor announced. Two dark haired Konoha ninja made their way down to the stadium floor. "The match between Nara Nobu and Aburame…"

"I forfeit!" the dark haired boy that wasn't wearing a full-length hooded jacket shouted.

"What!"

"There's no way I can beat Shou, it would be too troublesome," Nobu said, hands in his pockets. "I forfeit."

Laughter broke out in the Kage box as Naruto nearly fell out of his chair from laughing so hard.

"What are you laughing at?" Takeshi sneered. "A ninja just forfeited before a shot was even fired, how cowardly! Doesn't your ninja have any shame Tsunade-san?"

Tsunade's face grew red but Naruto cut her off. "It wouldn't do well to insult the Hokage, Tsuchikage-dono," he said. "Remember that Hokage-sama is one of the _Densetsu no Sannin_, as well as the most accomplished medical ninja our world has ever seen. And as for why I'm laughing, I had heard of the Nara's laziness but I never would have thought that one would forfeit before the fight even began. And while you think that might be cowardly, the Chunin Exams are voluntary. And from what I know of the Nara clan, they are some of the smartest people around, so I'm sure that Nobu-kun had some sort of plan but realized that it wouldn't work and decided to forfeit rather than risk being injured. Shows quite a strong grasp of tactics, knowing when to retreat when you know you can't win."

Tsunade and Gaara nodded. "He's just like his father," Tsunade said. Naruto blinked. "Nara Nobu is the son of Nara Shikamaru, one of my most respected jonin and a man who in fact forfeited himself during his appearance in the Chunin Exams. It was quite amusing as it was against Gaara-dono's sister Temari."

"I remember that," Gaara said with a small smile. "She was extremely angry with the Nara after that, it was quite amusing."

Below, in the stadium, the proctor had announced Aburame Shou as the winner for the match and called down the next two fighters, Matoke Kenshin from Arashi and Koguchi Yuji from Iwa.

"Oh so we get to see Kenshin-kun now," Naruto said. "This should be fun."

"What can you tell us about your boy Hiruzen-san?" Fumio asked.

"I think that it will be more fun if you just watch," Naruto said with a smile. "Kenshin-kun is one of my most surprising ninja, even I don't know what he'll show us."

"Well, he won't do much against Yuji," Takeshi said. "That runt looks like he could barely see over my knee, let alone beat someone of Yuji's caliber."

"We'll see," Naruto said with a mysterious smile.

"Hajime!" the proctor announced.

A cloud of dust erupted from Kenshin as the small boy rocketed forward at near-Jonin speeds. In a blink of an eye, Kenshin was inside Yuji's guard and quickly landed a three-punch combo to the taller boy's chest, stomach and chin. Yuji stumbled backward, trying to keep his feet under him.

"I told you," Naruto chuckled at Takeshi's face. "Kenshin-kun knows that he isn't the most intimidating ninja but he uses that to his advantage. Don't blink, or you'll miss this."

Yuji leapt backward from Kenshin, trying to gain space however, Kenshin's speed allowed the smaller boy to keep up with the Iwa ninja.

"Get away you little pest," Yuji snarled, kicking Kenshin in the chest and knocking the smaller boy away. He quickly made several hand signs and called out a jutsu. "_**Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu!**_"

A large fireball sped across the stadium toward Kenshin, who instantly vanished and reappeared twenty feet to the right. The small boy pulled a kunai from his pouch and sped off again. Another cloud of dust surrounded Yuji, who narrowed his eyes in an attempt to spot Kenshin.

"That's it you little pest," Yuji growled as his hands blurred through several hand signs. He slammed his palms on the ground and shouted out, "_**Doton: Joushou Tsuchi Shuuha no Jutsu!**_" (Earth Release: Rising Earth Wave.)

A wave of earth erupted from where Yuki had hit the ground, spreading out in a circle around Yuki. "You won't get away from me now!"

"Whoa!" Kenshin cried as he leapt over the swell of earth. "Kuso!" he cursed, as another large fireball sped toward him. "_**Kage Bunshin!**_" Kenshin shouted. A clone appeared at Kenshin's side and grabbed the original before throwing him to the side in order to avoid the fireball.

"What the! How can that boy know the _**Kage Bunshin**_, it's a kinjutsu from my village," Tsunade growled, glaring at Hiruzen.

"Like I said, Kenshin continues to surprise me," Naruto said.

"Too bad, so sad," Kenshin chided as he dashed forward once more and slipped inside Yuki's guard and began striking the taller boy everywhere and anywhere he could. Yuji tried to defend himself but he wasn't fast enough. Kenshin swept Yuji's legs out from under him and leapt into the air, aiming to finish the match with a spinning axe kick. Yuki was able to push himself away from where he was laying. The spot where Yuji was lying erupted into a ploom of smoke, as Kenshin's kick blew up the area.

"Kuso!" Yuji muttered. "If I had been hit by that, then I would have lost no question about it. But you're going to have to do better than that to beat me. _**Katon: Dai Endan!**_"

Kenshin sped through the approaching fireballs and landed a spinning sidekick to Yuji's side, sending the taller boy flying into the stadium wall. The smaller boy sped through some hand signs and called out, "_**Suiton: Teppoudama!**_" A large ball of chakra-infused water spat from Kenshin's mouth.

"ARGH!" Yuki cried as the water blasts slammed into him. He slumped to the ground, and stayed still. The proctor made his way over to the fallen boy and looked him over.

"Winner! Matoke Kenshin of Arashi!" he announced.

Takeshi growled as he watched the medics carry his unconscious ninja away. "Well, it seems that my ninja has shown that size isn't everything," Naruto chuckled.

"Next match will between Inuzaka Ookami of Konohagakure and Ochida Hitomi of Arashigakure, would these two come down?" the proctor asked.

"Oh so now we get to see an Inuzaka?" Naruto commented. "Hitomi-chan might have some trouble with this one."

"OH, how so?" Fumio asked.

"Hitomi is very talented in using ninjutsu but isn't as good at taijutsu," Naruto said. "So this match might be difficult for Hitomi-chan, though I think that she can win if she thinks things through."

"How about we place a bet on the match then Arashikage?" Tsunade asked. "Tsume and Ookami's father know that Ookami is one of their most promising clan members."

"Are you sure you wish to make a bet on your ninja?" Naruto asked with a chuckle. "Isn't one of your nicknames the 'Legendary Sucker'?"

Tsunade growled as the Tsuchikage and Raikage chuckled along with Naruto.

"What did you say gaki?" Tsunade barked, raising an arm. Hiruzen froze and put his hands up in a calming gesture.

"My apologizes, Hokage-sama," Naruto said. "I was just making a joke. You were the one to suggest making a bet. Oh look the fight has started."

"_**Gatsuga!**_" Ookami shouted as he and his partner launched themselves at Hitomi. The young girl leapt upward to avoid the swirling attack.

"_**Suiton: Teppoudama!**_" Hitomi cried as she spat several water balls at Ookami. The ninja/dog pair broke off their attack in order to avoid the water jutsu.

"_**Raiton: Kiriorosu!**_" Hitomi shouted. A slash of lightning shot from Hitomi's hands and sped toward Ookami.

"Kuso!" the wolf boy growled as he leapt away. The jutsu struck the ground where he had been standing and created a large hole in the ground. "You're going to have to do better than that to beat me!" Ookami chided. "Let's go Inumaru!"

The small grey dog barked and leapt toward his partner. Ookami flicked something at Inumaru and suddenly Hitomi felt a spike of chakra coming from the dog. Inumaru's normally dark grey fur turned red and grew much longer, sticking up all over his body.

"_**Gatsuga!**_"

"I've already seen that attack, it won't work on me," Hitomi shouted. But then she realized that the _**Gatsuga**_ was rotating even faster than before. "Kuso!" she cursed. "_**Suiton: Sujiinheki no Jutsu!**_" A wall of water shot up and intercepted the spinning Inuzaka and nin-dog, however the jutsu was still strong enough to punch through the wall of water, though Hitomi was able to leap away from the attack.

"Impressive," Naruto muttered. "It looks like Hitomi-chan was able to improve her water element ability during the month between Second and Third Exams."

"_**Suiton: Suiben no Jutsu!**_" Hitomi cried out. A stream of water appeared in Hitomi's hand, she flicked her wrist and the water shot across the stadium and struck out at Ookami. The Konoha ninja howled in pain as the water whip wrapped around his leg and yanked him off his feet. He landed on his back with a thud.

"_**Raiton: Hiraishin no Jutsu!**_" Hitomi cried. Lightning engulfed her hand; she slashed her hand through the water whip, sending sparks down it. Ookami cried out in pain as lightning crackled around his body. Inumaru whined as his partner struggled to free himself from the attack.

"That's enough," the proctor shouted. "Winner Ochida Hitomi of Arashigakure!"

"All right Hitomi-chan!" Naruto cried out pumping his fist, much to the displeasure of the other Kages.

"Your ninja displayed quite a bit of forethought," Fumio commented. "Being able to use two high-class jutsus in conjunction with each to improve their effects."

"Yes," Tsunade said. "It's rare to find a person with both lightning and water elements outside of Kumo."

"Indeed," Fumio said. "Makes me wonder where you found her."

"If you're thinking that I stole her from Kumo," Naruto said shortly. "I assure you, Hitomi-chan and her family have been members of my village ever since its inception. And I don't appreciate your thoughts that I would 'steal' people from another's village, I'm not Orochimaru or others."

Fumio and Takeshi growled at Hiruzen. "I don't take to kindly to your tone Hiruzen-san," Takeshi growled.

"I agree," Fumio snarled. "You would be wise to not insult two of the Five Great Nations, boy."

"And you would be wise not to underestimate the Storm," Naruto answered, leveling a steely eyed glare at the two older Kage. "It will do you no good."

"Next match will be between Nishi Chieko of Sunagakure and Fukuzawa Amaya of Kumogakure," the proctor announced. Two young female ninja made their way down to the stadium floor and faced off against one another. As soon as the proctor gave the go signal, Amaya, the ninja from Kumo, drew her sword and shot across the stadium arena toward Chieko. The Suna ninja leapt backward, her hands flashing through hand signs.

"_**Doton: Doryuu Heki!**_" she cried out, raising a wall of sandy earth in front of her.

"That won't stop me," Amaya said as sidestepped the earthen wall, her sword charged with lightning. Chieko tried to leap away but the lightning from Amaya's blade reached out and caught Chieko. The Suna ninja cried out in pain as lightning arced around her body, setting her nerves aflame. But as quickly as the lightning struck Chieko, it vanished.

Chieko rolled sideways, avoiding Amaya's sword strike, though her nerves were still firing off randomly as Amaya's lightning strike continued its work. She tried to form another _**Doton**_ defensive jutsu but the lightning still coursing through her body made channeling her chakra correctly nearly impossible.

Reaching into her pack, Chieko pulled out a johyo. Gaining some space from Amaya, Chieko began swinging the johyo rapidly, using its dart and length to keep Amaya at bay. Chieko knew that she couldn't beat Amaya in close range combat but hoped that she could outlast the Kumo ninja.

Amaya batted aside the dart easily with her sword. "You're going to have to do better than that to beat me," she jeered. "Did you really think that such a weak weapon would be able to beat me?"

Chieko frowned as she pulled in her cord before twirling it around once more, this time channeling her chakra down its cord. The cord instantly began coiling and twisting like a snake.

"What the?" Amaya cried as the cord danced around her sword, wrapping itself around the blade. She tried to cut the wire by charging her blade with lightning chakra but was stunned to find that she couldn't.

With a flick of her wrist, Chieko yanked the sword out of Amaya's hands and caught it with her empty hand. She glanced at the blade for a moment before it erupted into lightning chakra. Chieko cried out as she collapsed to the ground.

"You should have thrown my blade aside as soon as you took it from me," Amaya sneered. "I've put a seal on the blade so that it only reacts to my chakra. If anyone else tries to use it, the seal will activate and cause a build-up of my chakra will convert itself into lightning and attack the wielder."

"Clever," Naruto commented. "To think far enough ahead to make sure that your own weapon isn't used against her shows Chunin level planning at the very least."

"Indeed," Takeshi said.

"She's done for," Amaya said. "I packed enough chakra to take down several ninja, she'll be lucky to be able to stay conscious after that."

The proctor made his way over to the downed Suna ninja. Chieko was conscious but her clothes were smoking as well as her limbs were trembling randomly, as the lightning chakra played havoc with her nerves. "Winner Fukuzawa Amaya," the proctor called.

"Too bad Kazekage-dono," Fumio snickered. "It seems that your ninja wasn't up to scratch."

Gaara just leveled a stoic stare at the Raikage.

"Well it looks like we've reached the final match in the first round," Naruto said, noticing the tension rising between Gaara and the Raikage.

"Yes," Takeshi said. "And it seems to be between one of my ninja and one of your own, Hiruzen-san. It seems that your ninja have done well so far; winning each of their matches but that will end here."

"We shall see," Naruto commented.

"The final match of the first round will be between Katsu Eiji of Arashigakure and Mori Kohaku of Iwagakure," the proctor said. "Will the two participants make their way down to the stadium floor?"

A moment later, a very large boy wearing the hitai-ate of Arashi appeared, coming out of the ground like a plant. Kohaku leapt down from the viewing platform and walked over to face off against Eiji. Many murmurs were heard as the spectators got their first looks at the two fighters. Eiji towered above his opponent by nearly two heads, and the Iwa girl wasn't very physically imposing.

"Interesting match up Tsuchikage-dono," Naruto said. "From just looking at the two, it seems that Eiji-kun will have the advantage."

"True," Takeshi said. "But we know that physical statue doesn't make the battle won."

Naruto nodded. "Yes, you are right," he said. "We'll just have to wait and see what happens."

"Indeed."

"Hajime!" the proctor shouted, slicing his hand down and leaping backward as Eiji charged forward, intending on ending the fight quickly. However his powerful punch missed as Kohaku ducked under the slow but powerful punch easily and landed several strikes of her own. However, she realized that she wasn't strong enough to deliver much damage to the large youth. Ducking under another powerful strike, Kohaku leapt backward to gain some space. She quickly made several hand signs and cried out a jutsu, "_**Doton: Doryuudan no Jutsu!**_"

A dragon made of muddy sand erupted from the stadium floor and sped toward Eiji, who looked up at the approaching dragon with a bored look. He quickly made several hand signs of his own.

"_**Doton: Doryuu Heki!**_" A stonewall intercepted the dragon before it could reach Eiji, however it was strong enough to shatter the defensive jutsu. Eiji charged forward but wasn't fast enough to catch Kohaku as she leapt up onto the stadium wall.

"_**Suiton: Teppoudama!**_" she cried out, spitting several water projectiles toward her opponent. Eiji tried to dodge but couldn't dodge them all. Two of the projectiles slammed into him and sent him crashing to the ground.

With a groan, Eiji sluggishly got to his feet. He looked up to find his opponent but saw nothing. Narrowing his eyes, Eiji reached out with his senses. During the month of training, Eiji had practiced learning to dispel genjutsu since he was terrible at casting it, though during this time off, he learned that he had a knack for dispelling them. Feeling some foreign chakra trying to invade his own system, Eiji made a Ram hand sign and yelled, "Kai!"

The world around him shimmered for a moment then came back into focus. And just in time, as Kohaku was descending from above him, a kunai in her hand. Eiji leapt backward to avoid the kunai strike.

"Not bad," Eiji commented as he drew his own kunai. "You had the right idea in trying to trap me in a genjutsu. I can't create one to save my life…however, I discovered I have a certain knack for dispelling as well as noticing them."

Kohaku growled as she avoided one of Eiji's own kunai strikes. She knew that she couldn't face this boy using just her physical abilities, he was much too strong for that and her genjutsu abilities seemed to be useless because of what he told her. She leapt backward to avoid another strike and then backflipped backward several times to gain space. Her hands flew through some hand signs and called out, "_**Ninpou: Kage Shuriken Bunshin no Jutsu!**_" The five thrown shuriken quickly became twenty-five.

Eiji leapt backward to avoid the shuriken before channeling chakra into his legs to propel himself across the stadium. Kohaku sidestepped Eiji and spun around, nailing the larger boy with a spinning kick in the back of the head. Eiji grunted as the extra momentum sent him crashing into the stadium wall. Shaking his head, Eiji pulled himself out of the wall. Feeling the hairs stand up on the back of his neck, Eiji ducked just as a kunai was embedded in the wall where his head would have been. Rolling sideways to avoid several more kunai, Eiji was finally able to get to his feet and face Kohaku.

"_**Suiton: Hahonryuu no Jutsu!**_" Kohaku cried, as a swirling vortex of water formed in her hand. Eiji brought his hands up to protect himself but Kohaku's jutsu struck him in the stomach. Eiji cried out as the _**Suiton**_ jutsu tore into his body. With a large explosion, Eiji was thrown backward into the wall with a loud crack. Kohaku put her hands on her knees as she attempted to catch her breath.

The proctor looked over Eiji and nodded. "Winner Mori Kohaku!" he announced.

"It seems that your boy failed to secure a clean sweep, eh Hiruzen-san," Takeshi chided with a smug grin.

Naruto just shrugged. "You can't win them all," he said. "Eiji still has quite a bit to work on but he has grown stronger. I'm proud of all my ninja. And you can learn more from a loss than you do from a victory."

"Indeed," Gaara said. He got to his feet and stepped forward to the balcony. "And that concludes the first round of the Third Round of the Chunin Exams. Now the Finals will reconvene tomorrow morning, this is being done to make sure that each of the participants are at their very best. Please enjoy all that Sunagakure no Sato had to offer."

\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Meanwhile deep underneath Konohagakure no Sato, a meeting was taking place. Three figures were hidden by shadows as the spoke in whispers.

"This is the time," a hushed female voice hissed to her two fellows. "With the slug-bitch out of the village, we can use her absence to take the village. Are your men ready to proceed?"

"Patience," a man said. "My men are in position and only await my signal. By this time tomorrow, the village will be back on its rightful path with me as Hokage!"

**A/N: There's the newest chapter of _ST: WotS_, hope you all enjoy it. Please read and review any suggestions on how to make this better. I am somewhat muddling through this story at the moment so it might not be as smooth as it could be. Once I finish this story 'arc' I will go back and look it over to smooth things out. Majority of the ****jutsus used in this chapter I found from .**

**First Round matches (Winners in bold)**

Goto Hachiro vs. **Fukuda Mai**

Ijiri Emiko vs. **Masuzoe Toshio**

Hyuga Hitomi vs. **Hiranuma Seiji**

Nara Nobu vs. **Aburame Shou**

**Matoke Kenshin** vs. Koguchi Yuji

Inuzaka Ookami vs. **Ochida Hitomi**

Nishi Chieko vs. **Fukuzawa Amaya**

Katsu Eiji vs. **Mori Kohaku**

**Enjoy this chapter and also check out my other stories posted on **

**S.R.W.M.O**


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